East Bay Rep. Barbara Lee kicked off her U.S. Senate campaign Saturday before a few hundred supporters filling the risers and basketball hardwood at Laney College’s gymnasium in her hometown of Oakland — formally launching her bid for the seat Dianne Feinstein has held for three decades.
“She is, and always has been, on the frontlines advocating for health care workers, reproductive rights, voting rights, working families and environmental justice,” Mia Bonta, an East Bay state assemblymember, said from the podium. Bonta was one of the over half-dozen elected officials who spoke in support of Lee at the campaign rally, including Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and San Francisco Mayor London Breed.
David McCuan, a political science professor at Sonoma State University, previously said that Lee will need to work to differentiate herself from the rest of the liberal field and overcome the name recognition of Schiff and Porter.